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Your neighborhood may affect your brain health

Middle-age and older people living in more disadvantaged neighborhoods — areas with higher poverty levels and fewer educational and employment opportunities–had more brain shrinkage on brain scans and showed faster decline on cognitive tests than peo…

What does the study of domesticated birds tell us about the evolution of human language?

Language is one of the most notable abilities humans have. It allows us to express complex meanings and transmit knowledge from generation to generation. An important question in human biology is how this ability ended up being developed.

Supplement treats schizophrenia in mice, restores healthy ‘dance’ and structure of neurons

A simple dietary supplement reduces behavioral symptoms in mice with a genetic mutation that causes schizophrenia. After additional experiments, including visualizing the fluorescently stained dancing edge of immature brain cells, researchers concluded…

Mirror, mirror: Viewing your own face, even subconsciously, is rewarding

Researchers have found that the subliminal presentation of images of one’s own face activates a central component of the dopamine reward pathway, thus illuminating the mechanisms behind our powerful ability to automatically prioritize processing of our…

Neural plasticity depends on this long noncoding RNA’s journey from nucleus to synapse

A synaptically localized long noncoding RNA proves to be an important regulator of neural plasticity.

Female protective effect: Researchers find clues to sex differences in autism

Researchers have found that autism may develop in different regions of the brain in girls than boys and that girls with autism have a larger number of genetic mutations than boys, suggesting that they require a larger ‘genetic hit’ to develop the disor…

Coronavirus does not infect the brain but still inflicts damage, study finds

SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, does not infect brain cells but can inflict significant neurological damage, according to a new study of dozens of deceased patients.

Uncovering the secret of the hunger switch in the brain

Researchers have revealed the mechanism of action of the master switch for hunger in the brain: the melanocortin receptor 4, or MC4 receptor for short. They have also clarified how this switch is activated by setmelanotide (Imcivree), a drug recently a…

A neuromagnetic view through the skull

The brain processes information using both slow and fast currents. Until now, researchers had to use electrodes placed inside the brain in order to measure the latter. Researchers have now successfully visualized these fast brain signals from the outsi…

Estrogen status – not sex – protects against heightened fear recall

A new study shows that markers of fear recall differ between men and women, but in a hormone-dependent manner.